Till This Moment
by Casa Circe
Summary: Zutara Week 2009 Day One: Crossover. My humble contribution. Zuko and Katara are sent to resolve their differences by taking a unique journey with a prejudiced young woman and a proud gentleman. One-shot.


**ZUTARA WEEK 2009 Day 1: CROSSOVER**

**Disclaimer: **_**Avatar: the Last Airbender **_**belongs to Bryke, but Zutara week belongs to all Zutarians.**

Note: This was the toughest prompt for me because the possibilities were ENDLESS. Set after "The Western Air Temple" but before "The Boiling Rock."

Rather long so I applaud your patience. And it is also condensed since I have not the time to put all the emotions and events in just a one-shot. These are scenes from the 2005 adaptation. But some lines are from the novel.

And the cheesy stuff are my own silly inventions. Can't avoid them.

Style is also strange. And I will not even say that I compare my writing to Jane Austen's. This is but a flight of fancy. Enjoy.

--

Katara wiped her brow as she took a break from training. She sat on the edge of a fountain in the Western Air Temple, a statue of Avatar Yangchen towering above her.

She had chosen this relatively remote area of the temple to practice so that she would not be disturbed by the others. Here she had access to her element as well as the tranquil surroundings she needed to focus.

With a sigh, she closed her eyes to relax a bit.

But this was disturbed by someone's unexpected arrival. She opened her eyes and frowned at what she saw.

Zuko looked equally surprised to see her there but not as angry. Seeing her glare, he turned on his heel and made to leave as soon as he could.

Katara continued to glare at him and in her anger, could not resist speaking.

"I had hoped that this was the most sacred area of the Western Air Temple," she began acidly, "but apparently, even the Air Nomads could not ward off _all _evil spirits."

Zuko stopped in his tracks. He turned to look at her, anger and hurt showing in his golden eyes.

"You're harsher than I remember," he said simply.

"Am I?" she replied, her voice rising, "you should get credit for it then. After all, this is what I learned from your betrayal in Ba Sing Se."

The firebender's eyes went wide with sadness and guilt. He sighed and turned around again.

But before the waterbender could launch another round of verbal attacks, she and Zuko were enveloped in a bright and blinding light. Shielding their eyes against the brilliance, they heard a strange voice speaking to them.

As they searched for it, they both noticed that the eyes on Avatar Yangchen's statue were glowing brightly and the lady airbender was addressing them.

"Discord within the Avatar's own party can only hinder him in his duties," the previous Avatar began, "you who are supposed to be his teacher, you have been poisoned by your own anger and hatred."

Neither of the two benders could move or speak as the Avatar's light surrounded them. They could barely see around them as well. The last thing they heard were Avatar Yangchen's enigmatic words.

"You will take a journey where you will let go of your pride and prejudice.."

--

When Katara opened her eyes she was no longer in the Western Air Temple. In fact, she didn't seem to be anywhere on the Four Nations (she would know by now, she had traveled through most of them).

She seemed to be floating in the air, her feet had nothing solid to stand on. She glanced at her hands and saw that they were not her hands at all. Everything was water, she herself was no longer a solid entity, but only a cool, flowing element. Her element.

Katara realized that she had become the rain.

But before she could react violently to this circumstance, something caught her eye (or at least that function of sight she still retained even if she was all water). Flowing towards the figure, she noticed a young woman running from the rain and finding shelter in a strange structure surrounded by pillars.

The dark-haired girl leaned against the stone wall breathlessly.

Somehow, Katara could feel the girl's heartbeat and could even hear her thoughts. Unfortunately for the liquefied waterbender, she could not really understand what was going through the girl's head. Names of people and something about a failed marriage.

Katara could not be sure. All she knew was that the young woman felt some strong resentment against an individual over some heavy grievances.

"Don't I know about that," Katara thought to herself.

But the strange young woman had been followed.

Katara turned to see another breathless person arrive, this time a tall man. Katara watched as the girl reacted with surprise at his arrival.

The waterbender was eager to see how this exchange would turn out so she watched, as the rain.

"Miss Elizabeth!" the man addressed the other, "I have struggled in vain and I can bear it no longer..."

His words came out quickly and almost muffled so that neither Katara nor Elizabeth (as the waterbender now knew) could comprehend his meaning.

It was only when Elizabeth expressed this confusion that he clarified his words.

"I love you," he said breathlessly, causing shock to both the real girl and the rain-spirit, "most ardently."

Katara could not help but feel a little giddy about those words, even if she did not know either of the people. She waited excitedly for the woman's reply.

And in the bitter exchange that followed, Katara came to know more of the tensions that existed between these two people. In listening to Elizabeth's thoughts, Katara began to feel the same anger towards this man, Darcy, that Elizabeth harbored.

The rain poured harder, as Katara continued to listen to their argument, feeling slightly guilty at intruding on such a private conversation but having no other choice.

At the end of it, the man, looking hurt and mortified, bid his farewell and walked away.

Katara pitied him slightly even if she supported Elizabeth. The rain-girl glanced at her companion and saw that the young woman was not exactly satisfied with the outcome of that passionate exchange.

--

Zuko opened his eyes and found himself in a strange-looking room, with rich furnishings he had never seen before. But everything around him seemed so large.

Katara was nowhere to be seen.

He felt extremely warm but not uncomfortably so.

He was clearly no longer in the Western Air Temple but as the firebender made an effort to explore his new surroundings, he realized that he no longer had his body. He glanced at his hands and gasped in shock as he saw that he was nothing but a flickering flame.

He had turned into his own element.

And in glancing about him, he also realized that he was the flame of a small candle on top of a desk.

A young man was busy writing something by the candle light and though Zuko tried calling out, the man could not hear him.

But strangely enough, Zuko could hear the man's every thought. Having nothing else to do, Zuko listened, and learned about his distressed companion.

He had just been rejected by the woman he loved.

_Sounds familiar, _Zuko thought to himself as the man continued to think and write.

The letter was long and sometimes a bit confusing to the candle-flame. Nevertheless, Zuko got the gist of it.

The man was trying to explain himself and justify his actions to the woman who had turned him down. He was determined at least to win her forgiveness.

Again, this struck a chord in Zuko. He greatly sympathized with this man, who he later learned was called Fitzwilliam Darcy.

A strange name, the firebender thought, but the circumstances were curious enough.

As the letter was sealed, the man blew the candle out, the flame hoped that the letter would have the desired result.

--

This time, she was a fountain in a great estate. Katara was rather pleased with this form .

She had been traveling with Elizabeth Bennet ever since that fateful proposal, in any water form that happened to be near the young woman.

Katara had shared in the girl's emotions and thoughts and witnessed how much Elizabeth's feelings had softened towards Darcy after reading his letter and admitting her own errors in judgment.

Katara could not help but feel that this was Avatar Yangchen's way of teaching her to forgive Zuko but she still found that difficult. She did not care to dwell on it, although she would get disturbing visions of him every now and then. Most notably was the scene where he was burned and banished by his father.

Katara had seen this just as Elizabeth was reading Darcy's letter, revelations occurring at the same time.

And now, the two girls were in Pemberley, Mr. Darcy's home. Both of them admired the surroundings and joyfully explored the grounds.

But later on, Katara watched as Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy unexpectedly met and spoke with one another. The exchange was an awkward one and Katara at once knew that Elizabeth was denying her feelings towards the man she had so grossly misjudged.

And as this happened, Katara wondered if she too would develop the same sentiments for the one she had misjudged so unfairly.

--

He was everywhere at once, glowing in the light of several candles spread all over the room.

Zuko watched sadly as the upsetting scene unfolded. They were in the "Rose and Crown" at Lambton and Elizabeth had just received some distressing news from home.

Zuko felt bad for Darcy since everything had been going so smoothly for the past few days. Elizabeth had unexpectedly appeared at the man's doorstep and he had had the opportunity to show her how much he had improved.

_And at least she seemed to give him credit for it, _Zuko thought. How he longed to have such approving smiles from one other person.

But now that some problems had arrived, the firebender (in candlelight) wondered what the man would do to help.

Darcy was clearly pained to see the young woman so distressed and offered consolation in that shy, quiet way of his. Zuko hoped that she would soon see his worth, as the firebender had already witnessed, having spent some time observing the man's actions.

But along with this hope for this "friend" of sorts, Zuko hoped he would finally be able to prove himself to another.

--

Dawn.

Katara was the mist as Elizabeth made her way through the woods alone.

Neither of them could sleep.

Elizabeth was still plagued by the distressing visit of Lady Catherine as well as by Darcy's strange and distant behavior towards her in the past few days.

Katara was pondering on other things. Again, just as Elizabeth's feelings came bubbling to the surface, Katara too realized her own.

She had had more visions of Zuko, of his wandering alone in the Earth Kingdom, of his banishment, and of the ill-treatment he received from his family.

She had seen his torment and now felt guilty for having doubted him.

But she knew not how long she would be living this strange existence, as her element.

She felt Elizabeth's resolution drawing near but knew that hers was probably not meant to be.

Katara sighed and her sigh was a light breeze.

All this, everything that the airbender Avatar had made her experience was "exactly calculated to make her understand her own wishes." And never had Katara "so honestly felt that she could have loved him, as now, when all love must be in vain."

She looked back on their acquaintance, so full of contradictions and clashes. How could such damage be repaired?

Suddenly, Elizabeth caught sight of someone in the distance, walking towards her.

And to her surprise, Katara-in-the-mist saw someone else as well.

Just as Elizabeth and Darcy came face to face, the mist and the sunlight met.

"You've been here all this time," Katara whispered and her words were carried in the breeze.

"I've been looking for you," Zuko replied, the sun's rays shining through the mist.

"You have bewitched me, body and soul," Darcy spoke, "and I love, I love, I love you. And never wished to be parted from you from this day on."

The same message was conveyed between the elements but this time, words were not needed.

Instead, the mist merged with the dawn gently and quietly.

Elizabeth and Darcy seemed to feel as if the elements were clasping hands to celebrate their union.

Little did they know that two of their constant companions were now leaving their world.

They were preoccupied.

As Katara and Zuko once more felt themselves engulfed in great light, the waterbender gently reached out and rested her hand on Zuko's scar affectionately.

And she smiled at him genuinely for the very first time and he felt his heart expand within him.

"I've been such a fool," she whispered as they were taken back to the temple, "till this moment, I never knew myself."


End file.
